The rising Alabama MC and Eminem's longtime manager (who's still got both Super Bowl teams kicking in his bracket) school us on the weekend's playoff round

A week after Eminem’s Shady Records NFL Playoffs bracket was busted by a 49ers upset win over the Saints, Shady Records co-founder Paul Rosenberg, aka Paul Bunyan, still has his two Super Bowl teams alive and well. We spoke with the current bracket leader about the NFL, bizarre Super Bowl parties, and the draft expertise of Matt Millen.

GQ: The Super Bowl was in Detroit a few years back. As a Motown native, what are your memories of that week?

Paul Rosenberg: I wore my Detroit Lions T-shirt to the game just to remind people that there actually was a football team that played in the city of Detroit. The one thing that sticks out for me is an event we hosted—we called it The Shady Bowl Super Party—and the completely random mix of people that showed up. It was at the State Theater and we were in the VIP area and I looked around at one point and Lennox Lewis and Tommy Lee were hanging out a few feet away from us, having an in-depth conversation. We had no idea how they ended up at the party, but there they were. That’s the great thing about football. All types of people are football fans. You’ll get the indie rock or emo dude who’s a huge football fan. Then, you’ll have a guy like Lennox Lewis or someone else from an entirely different walk of life who happens to be a fan of the same team. They may have nothing else in common outside their love of football.

GQ: Prior to the start of the playoffs, you picked a Ravens-Giants Super Bowl. What kind of crystal ball were you using when you filled out your bracket?

Paul Rosenberg: No crystal balls, man. We’ve still got to get through this weekend. I’m from Detroit and I am a Lions fan, but I’ve lived in New York for over 15 years and have kind of adopted the Giants as a second team. Filling out the brackets a few weeks back, I obviously couldn’t go against the Giants. But there are a lot of reasons I felt good about both squads. And the main reason is the defense.

GQ: This same Giants team lost to the 49ers in San Francisco a few weeks ago. Are you confident they’ll be able to get revenge in the rematch?

Paul Rosenberg: The fact that we’ve played them already serves as an advantage. The Giants know what to expect. Moving forward, having another shot, knowing the team that you’re up against is a good thing. I’d much rather be in a position of having to win one out of two than two in a row. So, advantage Giants in that area. But Coach Harbaugh—he’s done an extraordinary job this year. Most people thought that team was just scattered pieces, but he’s made them into a solid unit. Look at what he’s done with that quarterback, Alex Smith. The coaching is phenomenal, the defense is extremely strong, and the running game is sick. But the Giants are healthy. What that creates for the Giants is a lot of depth. When you’ve got a lot of strength at the skill positions—as the Giants do now—it causes a lot of problems for the opposing teams. I think the Giants will win.

GQ: What’s a Sunday spent watching football with Eminem like?

Paul Rosenberg: I live in New York and he’s always in Detroit, but few Sundays go by where we’re not texting each other throughout the day about the games on TV. The most incredible thing about him is that he talks more shit when his team loses than when his team wins.

GQ: What’s that even mean? Who talks shit after their team loses?

Paul Rosenberg: For instance, he’s a Cowboys fan, right? So, the Giants beat Dallas twice this year. And each time we beat them, he talked more shit about reasons the Giants aren’t any good than he would have had the Cowboys won. It’s ridiculous.

GQ: The Patriots are seven and a half point favorites this weekend. Are you sticking by that Ravens pick?

Paul Rosenberg: I mean, look, I’m not a Patriots fan. Part of it is that I just don’t want to see them in the Super Bowl again. As far as the Ravens go, though, they’re hungrier, they’ve got an incredible defense going, and Baltimore can get to Brady. If they get to him—which I think they will—they can win.

GQ: Eminem said he was a big fan of Ray Lewis. What are your thoughts on number 52?

Paul Rosenberg: Ray Lewis is one of my favorite players in the league. There are very few guys who can form an identity for an entire team. And not just the defense, but the entire franchise, really. A guy like Ray Lewis in Baltimore and a guy like [Brian] Urlacher in Chicago—their attitude, their determination, and their passion makes the entire team go. I’m happy they’re still playing. I’m a fan from afar of the Ravens, and that’s because of Ray Lewis.

GQ: Is there a guy who’s on TV talking about football that gets under your skin?

Paul Rosenberg: I go absolutely crazy when I see Matt Millen on TV. It goes beyond the draft picks. It was a brutal, dark period of football for the entire state of Michigan. What gets me is that ESPN has him up there analyzing the Draft! Seriously. Matt Millen has a job on TV discussing the Draft! If I’m a GM of a team, I’d listen to whatever Matt Millen says and do the complete opposite. Whoever he thinks is going to be great, I’d stay away from that player at all costs. He demonstrated that he can’t do that job over a period of many years. So, why is he being positioned as the expert? It’s amazing.

GQ: So, Ravens-Giants, huh?

Paul Rosenberg: When we were all filling out our brackets in the studio, everyone was taking the favorites. I told everybody there that there was no way both the Packers and the Saints would escape the second round. And, I was right. They all thought my bracket was weak. Now, look.

Alabama’s own Yelawolf also checked in from a remote location to talk Tebow, his Crimson Tide, and the perils of partying with porn stars.

GQ: On the eve of the NFL’s conference championship games, you’re in...Trinidad?

Yelawolf: Random, right? I’m in Trinidad on the way back to the mall because they sold me two right shoes.

GQ: That sounds like it should be a song.

Yelawolf: Yeah. [Rapping] "Two right shoes in Trinidad. Two right shoes in Trinidad. I left my wallet in El Segundo.I left my wallet in El Segundo. I’ve got two right shoes in Trinidad."

GQ: I’m told you saw Tim Tebow play in person a few months back. What’s your take on the guy?

Yelawolf: Tim Tebow is the All-American Virgin. Football is life where I’m from. In Gadsden, Alabama, kids cry during their senior years of high school because they can’t play football, anymore. So, I’ve met dudes like Tebow. I grew up with a bunch of Tim Tebows. They probably weren’t virgins like him, but you know what I mean.

GQ: So, is Tim Tebow you’re kind of guy?

Yelawolf: I’m a fan of him. Anyone who can stand in the face of adversity and overcome criticism, I can relate with that kind of person. He did things that were unexpected and accomplished many goals this year. He’s a hard worker. I get that.

GQ: What’d you think of the way the fans rallied around Tebow in Denver?

Yelawolf: He’s the second coming. People are fanatical, man. I saw a YouTube clip where a dude proposed to his girl in front of Tebow, like he was some kind of holy figure. It’s crazy.

GQ: Which side of the Alabama-Auburn rivalry are you on?

Yelawolf: Crimson Tide. I’ve got "Roll Tide" tattooed across my knuckles. I grew up in an Alabama household. That rivalry’s crazy, man. It’s like a war zone when they play. It’s caused divorces. It’s split up families. You’re either with &#x2018;Bama or you’re with Auburn. It’s no joke. For me, it’s a birthright. I tried playing Pee Wee football and shit, but sucked at it. But Alabama football was and always will be in my blood.

GQ: Did you attend Alabama’s recent BCS National Title Game win over LSU in New Orleans?

Yelawolf: I wasn’t at the game, but I was in town. Oh my god. We had a hotel looking at the Superdome. My friends and I watched the game in the lobby, and holy shit. They hated us. There were &#x2018;Bama fans there, but there were so many more LSU fans in town. And we wore our ’Bama colors and it just got worse and worse and worse with the LSU fans. After we won, we all took over Bourbon Street. It was all Alabama fans, just partying.

GQ: Who would you want to party with in the NFL?

Yelawolf: I don’t know if any of those NFL dudes can hang with me, quite honestly. They’d get in a lot of trouble hanging out with me.

GQ: Rob Gronkowski, the tight end on the Patriots, spent his bye week snapping photos with a porn star, Bibi Jones. The pictures were all over the Internet. He might be able to keep up with you.

Yelawolf:[Laughing] Oh, god. That’d be horrible. See, for other guys, that might sound fun. But, for me, that’s just a horrible look. I don’t want to be seen in any photos with no porn stars.

GQ: Do you play fantasy football?

Yelawolf: No, I don’t play fantasy football. Marshall [Mathers] loves that shit, though. He’s great at it. He’s got a trophy for fantasy football, dude. I saw it and said, "Yo, what is that?" It was this huge trophy, you know? And he’s like, "What? It’s fantasy football. I kill it." I’m like, "Umm, okay."

GQ: What about Madden? Do you play that?

Yelawolf: I grew up playing Tecmo Bowl. Bo Jackson was the shit. Growing up in Alabama, that’s all you heard about. Bo Jackson. I had the Raiders Starter jacket and everything. But, that was more because of Ice Cube than Bo, to be honest.

GQ: Have you ever met [Alabama head coach] Nick Saban?

Yelawolf: My grandfather and my uncle just met Coach Saban. My nephew plays football and they saw him speak at a camp. If I got to meet him, I’d take the opportunity to just listen to him. Some people are just tremendous leaders of men. And Nick Saban, he’s one of those guys.

GQ: What’d Bear Bryant mean to you as a kid?

Yelawolf: Bear Bryant. The houndstooth print hat. The burgundy blazer. That’s an iconic image. As a kid in Alabama, it was Ronald McDonald and Bear Bryant. Those were just about the only things in the world that mattered.

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